Aria's eyes fixed on the guard. "What about Granduncle Ian?" The guard fumbled for words. "Nothing... let me just report your arrival." "No need." Aria noticed the numerous surveillance cameras. Sneaking in would be impossible, so she had decided to just take the direct approach. "I'll call Granduncle Ian myself." The guard panicked, knowing that call would cost him his job. "No, no, please come in! I'll open the gate right away!" As they drove through, the cab driver was still stunned. "So this is your family's place? Then who were we following?" "A spy." Aria's words made the driver laugh. "You're quite the joker." Aria just smiled faintly. Simon grabbed her wrist. "Something's wrong with that house." Aria did not need to ask why as she saw it too. Her previous investigation had not shown anything unusual, but now she could sense vengeful energy absorbing the land's fortune. It seemed that Ian would really do anything for profit. The driver looked at the house too.
"Indeed, Ms. Carver arrived by cab." That alone was unusual. Edwin's understanding shifted with Aria's explanation–she had run away from home. Ian's eyes flickered with surprise; this was not what he had expected. Running away? Though suspicious, he maintained his composure. "Your grandfather would move mountains for you, Aria. Try to understand his good intentions." "Haven't I been understanding enough?" Aria settled onto the couch. "He made me create an online persona, and I did. I even had to memorize stuff until my head hurt. I'm a medical student, but he forces me to run the company. "He says I need to learn proper etiquette like other socialites since I'm from out of town. He's worried people will gossip." She leaned back. "I know he looks down on me but can't show it, so he argues with me at home and won't let me have friends." Her outburst left Edwin stunned. Ian put on a loving smile. "You're just being childish. Your grandfather could never look down on you. Come
Ian hid his nature too well. If Owen had not failed, he would have stayed perfectly invisible behind the scenes. This made Aria suspect he had hidden his playing cards, especially given how unusual this place felt. That was why she chose a gradual approach rather than confronting him directly. Ian said naturally, "Aria, stop being stubborn and have some hot food with your friend first. And who might this be?" "He's from Southbury." Aria pulled Simon closer. "My little brother from the back alley. Grandpa hates it when I associate with Southbury people. Even Grandma would only let them stay in courtyard houses instead of the main residence. "He got upset about this friend too. He said I was making him lose face by not following his orders." Ian could not recognize Simon as the beast of fortune. While those in the back garden would know, they were still recovering and waiting for William. They had no idea Aria would brazenly bring their target right to them—normal people would ce
A loud crash echoed from the back garden. The loud sound revealed how furious the intruder was. Aria stopped eating and asked, as anyone would, "Granduncle Ian, what's happening back there?" Ian glanced at Edwin, who quickly covered, "Nothing serious, they're just training an incompetent household staff." "Did they steal something?" Aria asked naturally. Edwin stumbled before nodding. "Yes! Ms. Carver, you're quite perceptive!" "They need proper punishment." Aria set down her fork and wiped her mouth. "Our family suffered because of that useless Dorothy. I got kidnapped because she let criminals in. "Granduncle Ian, you should fire disobedient staff. You can't go easy on them. If they conspire with outsiders to steal, they might even drain all of the Carver family's fortune. "Some people are born ungrateful. Even if you feed and care for them, they'll still bite the hand that feeds them." Aria's eyes fixed on Ian as she spoke. Though Ian's expression didn't change, Aria k
Aria thought to herself that that was exactly what she was trying to do, but she feigned shock. "Granduncle Ian was adopted? Grandpa never mentioned this! He doesn't treat Granduncle Ian like an adopted brother at all." "Mr. Carver Senior has always valued brotherhood," Edwin responded naturally, then realized he had praised their enemy. "Besides, there's a good reason for this. When the Carvers faced trouble back then, it was Mr. Ian who stepped up and protected Mr. Carver Senior." Aria doubted this version of events. Ian had let the Krowoians drain their land's energy through the Carver name. How could someone like him risk his life to save anyone? There must be other interests involved. Aria really wanted to understand how he received the protection of the Carver family's ancestors if he was not a true Carver. The house had problems, but they were not inherent. Something else was at play. As she pondered on this, her fingers tapped the table. Meanwhile, William could barel
William trusted their carefully cultivated agent would be absolutely loyal to their empire. Though not Krowonian, he had been given all the promised benefits. William could not imagine anyone would give up such opportunities. Most importantly, these were people chosen by their saintess! He blocked Ian's path with a dark tone. He looked at Ian. "I hope you won't regret this later." Ian gestured for them to leave. William said nothing more, but today's losses were severe enough to require higher authorization. People like Ian prioritized profit. Once that was gone, relationships naturally crumbled. Aria's earlier words were not casual, just as her suggestion to take a walk after eating was not random. Edwin thought nothing of it as long as she avoided the back garden. Aria chose the exit path. She left Simon behind to prevent his aura from being detected. As for herself, the spy she had let escape was from the perimeter and would not recognize her. Thus, she encountered William
Aria would wait for the mastermind to show before revealing her full strength. If not, they might retain hidden forces. The wooden doll's location remained uncertain. Aria worried about the numerous vessels and heavy vengefulness. It might lead to escaped targets and chosen ones like the Pollard family. This could not be random. The pattern reminded her of the Earthbound Manifestation she had encountered when Krowonians tried infiltrating through schools. They were possibly using similar but more subtle methods now. With life force and fortune involved, she had to take it seriously. She needed to inform her senior apprentice who was returning to Janovin soon. The Dracotigris Order must be notified too as evidence suggested they had internal problems. Aria withdrew her gaze, appearing normal as if just taking a post-meal walk. Perhaps only Simon resting upstairs would understand her true purpose. Now, she was the only practitioner in the house. No one else could sense his aura
The night deepened. The back garden appeared flawless, at least from an esoteric perspective. It was facing south with auspicious energy flowing from the east. But its perfection masked something crucial. Every piece of land had its destined fortune. It was not just humans that had souls–every blade of grass and tree had a spirit too. Nature would distribute what each deserved fairly. This layout disrupted that balance. While the house's fortune was excellent, it blocked the eastern winds. This meant the fortune of the entire wealthy district could not flow upward and would stop here instead. Aria studied the surroundings. With cameras everywhere and Sam absent, she would have to hack the mainframe herself. The security room now saw only yesterday's night footage. Ian focused entirely on Fergus. Finding a valuable new puppet was crucial to him. He underestimated Aria, while Edwin thought she was just playing around. They had opened several wine bottles, with loud party sounds
Aria's question made Orion freeze right away. The scholarship program was his secret lifeline. He simply couldn't figure out how she knew so many details about everything! "You've been setting me up in the stock market all this time. How did you also find out about the scholarship program?" Orion felt genuinely scared now—everyone had really underestimated Aria. When had she done all this research? She'd dug deeper than he ever imagined. The scariest part was that neither he nor that person had noticed anything. They all thought she was just helping the Carver family restore their former glory. Keeping the Chamber of Commerce out of the Carver family's hands was that person's strict order. That was why the Draycotts had climbed so quickly within the organization over the years. They all assumed Aria had come to Ludwiten to target the Chamber. But now... Orion looked up again. "The scholarship program is weird business. I only handled recruitment. I don't know where those peop
Orion said, "I don't know much, honestly." He looked at Aria with hesitation, as if he was afraid to name that person. He made a gesture instead. "That person is the lieutenant governor of Ludwiten, who has many achievements to his name. "If you're brave enough to investigate, I can tell you about the deals I handled. But I don't know about the rest." Aria raised an eyebrow. Her expression said everything—she had already kidnapped him, so did he seriously think she would be afraid to investigate this further? Orion took a deep breath. "I just handle the money. That person wants something bigger—he wants to make history, but he's been in poor health lately. He needs me to keep certain people in line, but I can't give you details since I really don't have proof." "Which people does he control? And how does he do it?" Aria asked casually. Orion glanced upward, his eyes slowly losing focus. "I have no idea which people." "Mr. Draycott, I thought you would have learned by now.
"Who the hell are you?" Orion shouted as he couldn't hold back anymore. He gripped the armrests hard, almost jumping out of his chair. But Aria barely glanced his way. "I brought you here, didn't I? Who do you think I am?""Y-You're..." Orion remembered a rumor from a business dinner about a Special Missions Unit that operated outside normal chains of command. They could investigate anyone without going through regular channels.Their authority even topped the Regular Missions Unit. Orion had laughed it off back then. Every group had to answer to someone higher up, so there couldn't be a unit with that kind of freedom. In Ludwiten, everyone answered to that one big shot. But now he realized such a thing actually existed!Orion's face turned ghostly pale. "Are you… a part of the Special Missions Unit?"Only that could explain everything! With all her digging and investigating, that person would have noticed what she had been doing. But Orion did not understand something. "
Usually, in this situation, Orion would have a lawyer present. But things were different today! He did not even know which department was holding him. All his usual connections seemed blocked, which made Orion start to panic from deep inside. He sat there, fidgeting nervously. No one else was in the room. "I want a lawyer! I'm innocent!" he shouted, trying to move, but his hands were cuffed to the chair. Just then, a familiar cool voice spoke up, carrying its usual casual tone, "Whether you're guilty or not, the law will decide." It was Aria. Her presence was completely different from earlier in the office. When Orion saw her, he wondered if his eyes were playing tricks on him. There wasn't a trace of the spoiled, rebellious, rich kid in her now. Instead, she looked at him calmly as if she were the highest authority in this place. Orion's heart sank. He wasn't stupid and knew how things worked. That was why his eyes widened as he stared at Aria. "Who are you really?" "D
Magdalene told Laura, "Now you're the partner everyone wants to work with." She laughed out loud. "This divorce couldn't have come at a better time." Laura's eyes widened as Magdalene spoke, her excitement growing by the second. "Mom, does that mean I'll be..." Laura could hardly imagine how amazing her future would be. Magdalene stroked her hair. "They won't call you Mrs. Grisham anymore. They'll call you the CEO of the Fitzroy Group." Laura's face trembled with barely contained excitement. She never considered that the shares they wanted weren't rightfully theirs but something they were taking through dirty tricks. "I was worried these families might side with Aria." Laura had genuinely been concerned about this. After all, families like the Katz family and those families working in traditional industries had started treating Aria with the same respect they once had for Barron. This was exactly what drove Laura crazy. Why should Aria get to live carefree after ruining her
Magdalene felt better than she had in a long time. She even ordered someone to open a bottle of wine to celebrate. This was the most relaxed day Magdalene had experienced in weeks. News about the Draycott family kept pouring in, and she had been feeling not just anxiety but a deep uneasiness. Over the years, the Fitzroy and Draycott families had become deeply entangled. Even without obvious business interests like others had, they shared information regularly. Even in that incident years ago, the Fitzroy family had been involved. Previously, she had worried more than anyone about the Draycott family's collapse. Now, she felt differently. First, there were the Grisham shares they would soon acquire. Second, she had learned that the Draycott family was not the only one that had lost money in the stock market because of Aria. Many prominent Ludwiten families had suffered losses thanks to her market manipulations. Magdalene understood clearly that to establish themselves in this
Aria turned her head, smiling brightly. "If you put it that way, I guess there really is something wrong with me." Lily couldn't understand why Aria still acted this way even after she had said all that. It was like Aria couldn't be bothered to take her seriously, as if she were just some random stranger with no connection to her. Lily was the one with knowledge of the future! Her face darkened. Aria noticed Lily's eyes on her, so she turned to face Lily. "You're Grandma's granddaughter, so I've cut you some slack. But you've only gotten worse by using visits to Grandma as excuses to steal things. "Anyone who cares about what you're saying can look into it. As for everything else, I'll leave that to these gentlemen." Hearing this, Lily panicked. She knew perfectly well that if Aria left, no one in that room would spare her. The most painful way to torture someone was to make them live in constant fear. Aria left the office, abandoning the terrified Lily. Those Chamber membe
Aria said, "You guys have misunderstood me. The Draycott family is just the first to fall. After that..." Aria's gaze fell on the figure hiding at the back. "Since Mr. Fitzroy is here, I won't need to make a special trip to your residence. Tell Mrs. Fitzroy Senior that your family is next on my list." Everyone who heard Aria's words wanted to eliminate her. But clearly, now wasn't the time. She had the upper hand, and the Draycott family's downfall had not benefited them at all—especially the Fitzroy family, who were already having a public clash with the Grishams. The Fitzroys wouldn't have stepped forward, but now that they'd been called out, they had to respond. Since things were out in the open, they had nothing to hide anymore. "Let's see about that." Their message was clear. Besides, they had already lost money in the stock market and weren't happy. Though they weren't as powerful as the Draycotts, they still had their backing from the mysterious man. If they united,
After this incident, members of the Chamber of Commerce couldn't keep pretending nothing had happened—especially those who had stabbed the Grishams in the back to climb up with the Draycott family. As fear crept through them, they were particularly worried that Orion might spill their secrets from years back. The corporate tower had never seen such a crowd gathered below as today. Earlier, they had kept up appearances. But the Chamber members now pushed past security, bringing their entourages charging up the stairs. Aria watched all of this with interest. She'd come here waiting for the rats to crawl out of their holes. Like the Guetta family, who were close to the Grishams but never made waves in Ludwiten. Jett's problems had enabled Aria to follow the breadcrumbs and uncover the truth. Without them, she wouldn't have spotted that the Guettas had jumped ship to the Draycotts. Those seasoned business sharks definitely had not expected to find Aria when they arrived. They wan